ovalle's historical relation of chile. 6^ 



CHAP. XII. — Of the Fountains which rife in other Parts of Chile, befides the 



Cordillera. 



BESIDES the rivers and fprings of the Cordillera, there are others which rife in the 

 plains and valleys, which have admirable properties. I fhall mention fome, for it i$ 

 impoflible to rehearfe them all, nor can I remember but a few. Firft, that which 

 rifes at the foot of the high volcano of Villa Rica, fo famous in that kingdom for its 

 terrible eifefts, for which God Almighty makes himfelf to be feared and refpeded by 

 mankind ; rifes, I fay, at the foot of this mount with fuc^i force, that it fprings out of 

 the earth in two fources, each as big as a man, and fufficient to form alone a good 

 ftream, and runs into a lake which is made by its waters. 



In another lake, out of which comes the river called Rio Chico, there rifes alfo a 

 fountain of hot water, moft efficacious for the cure of leprofies, and all contagious 

 infirmities. There is another fprings up in the Maguey, yet moft admirable ; for there 

 are two fources juft by one another, the one of hot, the other of cold water ; the 

 hot one is fo hot, that no one can endure his hand in it ; the cold one is let in to tem- 

 per the bath which is made for the fick. The baths of Rancagua are alfo very famous, 

 and like thefe ; which, for being near St. Jago, and in the greateft intercoufe of the 

 kingdom, are very ufeful, and much frequented. There are others in other parts; 

 but not remembering them diftm£tly, I can fay little of them. Among the fountains, 

 that of Ramon is very famous, as well for the goodnefs, as abundance of its waters ; 

 which is fuch, that they alone are fufficient to water many fields : it is about two leagues 

 eaftward of St. Jago, and in that diftrid. There are many others, among which, that 

 of Caren is worth taking notice of: it fprings in a beautiful meadow, of about five or 

 fix leagues in length, affording a delicious profped ; its water is very fweet, and enters 

 into the meadow ; the earth of which is fo porous, that whoever treads hard upon it, 

 feels it fhake under him : it is all the year green ; and the grafs is a kind of fmall tre- 

 foil, called by the inhabitants Caren, and is pleafant to eat. Neither ought I to pafs 

 over in filence another fountain between thefe two, very plentifully furniftied with de- 

 licate fweet water, which is always fo much the cooler, as the weather is hotter ; it is 

 called the fountain of Mayten, by reafon of a tree of that name, which grows at the 

 foot of a great fquare table of live rock, where people ufe to go and eat their collations, 

 the tree fheltering them all the while from the heat ; for it is a tree whofe leaves are 

 green all the year, fomething like a myrtle, but much larger, and without difpute of 

 a more beautiful green : by its foot runs this fountain, whofe fource is a little higher 

 in a valley, from whence it comes murmuring upon pebble ftones, and among pleafant 

 groves full of beautiful herbs and flowers. 



The trees, though wild, yet bear very favoury fruits of that foil ; and in them are 

 great variety of birds, who, with their harmony and fweet notes, make the entertain- 

 ment more delightful for thofe that frequent the place. It is not the leaft part of 

 their enjoyment, to difcover at the end of thefe woods a profpedl for many leagues 

 over plains, which being of fo great extent, many of them lie uncultivated ; fo that 

 among the vineyards and plowed lands, the wild uncultivated part is fo beautiful, 

 particularly in the fpring, that one would think art had helped nature. There are in 

 one place great fpots of yellow flowers, which cover the earth, fo that for a great 

 fpace nothing elfe is to be feen ; then you have white, blue, fillemot fpots of the fame 

 proportion ; the green meadows mingle in this with the waters of the river Mapocho, 

 which is feen from this diftance fometimes entire in its bed, then divided into feveral 



vQfu. XIV. K arm? 



